Installing and setting up a usb joystick.

Hi all...I'm new to VR and need help with how to properly install and set up a joystick for flight sims. I purchased the Rift S soley for combat flight sims, and have no need for any controllers other than my joystick, and of course, I'll be sitting only. Can a member here guide me through the proper steps? How to make sure my joystick is recognized? What do I click on to activate joystick? I have IL 2 from Steam and the new IL 2 Battle of Stalingrad etc. Please help if you can...thanks all...take care...

The first thing to note is that VR doesn't affect this. The Rift software doesn't understand proper joysticks, it's purely up to the sim to do it. So any guide on joysticks will be valid.

This also means you can't go without the Rift controllers altogether, they are the only way to interact with the Rift software itself while in VR. But while in the sim you should be fine not using them.

Next, it really depends on which simulator. Some have very detailed joystick setups supporting multiple devices at once. You'll need to do this for each sim, there's no simple shared setup. The sim may have build in defaults for popular joysticks.

I don't know about IL 2, but DCS and X-Plane have VERY detailed setups.

Thanks for the response. My Joystick is the MS Sidewinder FF. I do have the controllers set up etc., I was unsure because I didn't see anything that allows me to select the joystick in the Oculus device page. Should I start a sim, and find the joystick and it's settings in the game menue? I know this sounds like I'm a bit slow, but I'm really new to all this and what's required to get it all going. Know what I mean? Are there any video set up demos available from anyone in this Forum? I've googled, but can't find any video instructions pertaining to joystick set ups. This is the place where the Pros are, and that's why I registered. Where better to learn? Thanks again..all info etc. is SUPER appreciated. take care all....

Thanks for the response. My Joystick is the MS Sidewinder FF. I do have the controllers set up etc., I was unsure because I didn't see anything that allows me to select the joystick in the Oculus device page. Should I start a sim, and find the joystick and it's settings in the game menue? I know this sounds like I'm a bit slow, but I'm really new to all this and what's required to get it all going. Know what I mean? Are there any video set up demos available from anyone in this Forum? I've googled, but can't find any video instructions pertaining to joystick set ups. This is the place where the Pros are, and that's why I registered. Where better to learn? Thanks again..all info etc. is SUPER appreciated. take care all....

Hey yeah! Just plug it in and go! I was a little confused at first even as an avid "simmer' and was unsure, but most sims can allow multiple control devices. I've used both my rift controllers and my joystick in tandem for some games (ie: DCS)Have fun!

(If the joystick, pedals, throttle, etc. aren't set up as you like, just reference the programs settings page and edit them as needed.)

Most VR simulators started as flat monitor programs. They keep all the same input stuff. Some added motion hand controls to interact with the cockpit (like X-Plane).

The odds are if a simulator has a non-VR version then it will have it's own joystick support. It's possible some VR specific games (like VTOL VR) don't support other devices, they only support the motion controllers (oculus touch or vive wands).

Good morning all, and thank you for the valued info provided. The Sim I"m going to fire up is IL 2 Battle OF Stalingrad, Moscow etc. This is the new IL 2 series release. In the game set up, it shows a box to enable VR and it was already enabled when I loaded the game. It would appear I'm good to go. Just one more question...should I disable SLI prior to launching the sim in VR? Or,does Oculus disable it by default when VR is enabled? Once again I thank all tips from the members here at Oculus for the Quick and proper advice. I knew I would get the right answers from you guys. I'll let you all know what happens. You never know.lol. Take care all...

Good morning all, and thank you for the valued info provided. The Sim I"m going to fire up is IL 2 Battle OF Stalingrad, Moscow etc. This is the new IL 2 series release. In the game set up, it shows a box to enable VR and it was already enabled when I loaded the game. It would appear I'm good to go. Just one more question...should I disable SLI prior to launching the sim in VR? Or,does Oculus disable it by default when VR is enabled? Once again I thank all tips from the members here at Oculus for the Quick and proper advice. I knew I would get the right answers from you guys. I'll let you all know what happens. You never know.lol. Take care all...

Il-2 Great Battles by 1CGS is awesome in VR !You should check out Open Composite, you can use it rather than Steam VR for IL-2. Helps performance a lot.